Hyperionred: you are absolutely right about the sample. If you are going to make broad statements about the population you have to sample randomly from the whole population. You should also have roughly the same number of people in the two groups you are studying so your estimate of the variability is of the same quality. The Amodio paper did not do well on either account.

Tom: I also agree. The paper did not do an effective job of linking the instantaneous need for cognitive control to higher-order decision making processes. I lay part of the blame at the feet of Nature Neuroscience, who limits the length of brief reports to something like 500 words. Nothing like an incredible, press-release-worthy paper that is shorter than some comments here on the Fray. Beyond that, the rest would have been up to Amodio et al. to make the argument, which would have been a difficult position to defend.